Death by Engagement (20 page)

“Of course I was,” Deidre snapped.
“After all, I’m her twin sister. I know her better than anyone else in the
world. If she actually married him, it would have been a complete disaster.”

It was a disaster now, Cindy wanted to
say, but didn’t. “Why would it have been a disaster?” Cindy asked, instead.

Deidre suddenly stood up on her toes,
looking unwieldy and strange.

“What’s wrong, Deidre?” Cindy tried to
stop her.

“Nothing, I’m just upset. Shouldn’t I
be?” Deidre responded.

“Of course,” said Cindy, “but tell me
why the marriage between Shari and Doug would have been a disaster.”

At that Deidre stepped back down and
looked at Cindy directly.

“Here’s the truth and you may as well
know it! Shari and Tad were completely in love. They were perfect for each
other, made each other happy. I never saw Shari so happy before.”

This was not what Cindy expected. “Did
Shari tell you that?” she asked.

“She didn’t have to,” said Deidre, “it
was obvious to the world.”

“To your parents, too?” asked Cindy.

“Yes, of course, especially to them,
particularly my father. But could he stand to see Shari really happy? That’s
the big question, isn’t it?”

“I thought he loved her,” said Cindy.

“Yeah, when she did what he wanted, he
loved her,” Deidre quipped.

“And he wanted her to marry Doug?” Cindy
asked.

“Yes, he did. So did my mother and the
stupid psychiatrist. Everyone thought Doug was Prince Charming himself!”

“He wasn’t?” asked Cindy, urging Deidre
on.

“Just the opposite,” said Deidre, “and
finally, Shari realized it. Here’s the secret Shari made me swear not to tell.
She was never going to marry Doug anyway. She was definitely planning to go
back with Tad. And Tad knew it. She couldn’t get out of the trip to Aruba, but
there was no way she was going through with the engagement.”

Cindy took a swift breath. “She was
going to take a wedding venue and then break off?”

“I’m not sure exactly how she was going
to do it,” said Deidre. “Maybe she couldn’t stop taking the venue, but she
definitely wasn’t going to go along with the marriage. Tad told me she promised
him.”

Cindy was stunned. “This trip was a
farce?”

“Call it what you want to.” Deidre stood
back up on her toes. “It’s not so easy to say no to my father!”

“Your father wouldn’t have gone along
with breaking up the engagement, would he?” Cindy asked.

“That’s putting it mildly.” Deidre’s
face flushed as suddenly there was another hard knock on the door.

“Who could it be? Who is it?” Cindy felt
alarmed.

“Could it be Mattheus?” Deidre’s eyes
squinted.

Cindy felt shocked and wondered how
Deidre could have known Mattheus wasn’t here. There were a couple of other
rooms in the suite.

“Mattheus wouldn’t have to knock so
hard,” said Cindy, realizing in that instant that Deidre already knew who was
at the door. “Who’s at the door, Deidre?” asked Cindy.

“It’s got to be Tad,” said Deidre in a
shivery tone. “I called him and let him know I was coming to see you.
Everyone’s leaving Aruba soon. This is Tad’s last chance to save the woman he
loved.”

“To save Shari?” Cindy was confused.

“At least to nail the one who killed
her,” said Deidre. “That’s saving her in a way, isn’t it?”

Cindy
walked to the door in slow, deliberate steps as the rain started slashing the
windows.

She
opened the door, and there was Tad, trembling, tousled and damp.

“Come
in,” said Cindy, pulling the door wide open for him.

“Thank
you for everything you’re doing,” Tad mumbled in a quick, harried tone. “We
can’t leave the island like this so fast, not without Shari.”

Cindy
took a deep breath. “Shari will be with you in different ways now,” Cindy said
softly. “She’ll live in your heart, in your memories.”

“It’s
not enough,” Tad exclaimed, “we were going to be married.” Then he suddenly
crumpled down on the couch and began to cry.

Cindy
went over and sat beside him. “I know how awful this is for you, Tad, and how
hard it is to talk. But I need you to tell me everything you possibly can about
what happened.” Cindy spoke in a hushed tone.

“Shari
made me swear not to tell anyone,” Tad managed to say. “I promised not to say a
word.”

“Not
to say a word about what?” Cindy insisted.

“Shari
was scared of Doug.” Tad’s voice grew lower.

“Why?”
gasped Cindy. “You’ve got to tell me.”

“Deidre
can tell you, she knew,” he went on.

“I
knew that you and Shari were in love,” Deidre joined in boldly, coming closer.
“And I was happy about it. I was happy for you.”

“Did
you know that Shari was afraid of Doug?” Cindy was insistent. If this was true,
it was crucial information that turned everything around.

“Of
course I knew, how could I not know?” Deidre grew bolder.

Tad
looked at Deidre strangely. “Shari told me that no one knew,” he went on.

“What
else did no one know?” Cindy focused directly on Tad. “Why was she afraid of
Doug?”

“Oh
God, this is so hard to say,” Tad mumbled. “I promised Shari I would never say
it. I don’t want to shame her, I never did.”

“You’re
not shaming Shari by telling the truth,” Cindy intervened strongly. “The truth
will bring things to light, you’ll preserve her honor! And you’ll also save
others from possible harm.”

“You’re
right.” Tad looked up at Cindy, frightened. “I thought of that. There could be
more harm on the way.”

“Definitely,”
said Cindy. “We can’t let that happen, can we?”

“No,
we can’t,” said Tad, growing more stable.

“We
don’t want Shari’s death to have been without meaning. We can use it to stop
the killer.” Cindy’s eyes began to flash.

“You’re
absolutely sure someone killed her?” Tad looked up, alarmed, though momentarily
willing to accept the possibility.

“I’m
sure someone did, I’m sure,” Deidre piped up loudly. “Tell the whole truth,
Tad, tell it.”

Tad
sucked in his breath and plunged on. “After Shari and I broke up, even though
she got back together with Doug, we still couldn’t stay away from each other.
We talked at least three times a day. I kept begging her to come back.”

“And
what did she say?” asked Cindy, amazed.

“She wanted to,
but she was frightened. She told me that Doug sensed something different

about
her this time. He was becoming more edgy and possessive day by day. Then he
started going hunting a lot, and telling her about animals he cornered. That
scared Shari, she hated it.”

“He
was trying to frighten and intimidate her,” Deidre piped up.

“Absolutely,”
said Tad, “no doubt about it. Shari even said that during one of their
conversations Doug got mad and pushed her, hard.”

“Abuse!”
Deidre exclaimed.

“There
was even a bruise Shari showed me on her left arm,” Tad mumbled, putting his
hand up over his eyes.

That
had to be the bruise Cindy saw on the autopsy photograph, she quickly realized.

“Did
Shari report the shove or bruise to anyone else?” Cindy asked quickly.

“She
was ashamed to,” Tad broke in. “She didn’t want anyone to know about it,
especially her family. She said they’d think less of her then.”

“She
blamed herself,” said Deidre. “I saw the bruise and I told her over and over to
go to the cops with it.”

“She
wouldn’t?” asked Cindy.

“No,
not at all. That’s the last thing in the world she would do,” Deidre insisted.
“But I was furious about it. I had to do something, but didn’t know what. Then
it came to me.”

“What?”
asked Cindy, terrified.

“I
went to Doug about it myself.” Deidre stood up taller now. “I went and told him
that I knew what he’d done to Shari, and he could push her all he liked, she
didn’t love him anyway. She loved someone else. At first he didn’t believe me,
then I thought he would faint. I went on and said he didn’t deserve that, did
he? He deserved someone who he could trust.”

Tad
stood up from the sofa, horrified. “I had no idea you did that! That’s
horrible!”

“It’s
wonderful,” Deidre insisted. “If Shari didn’t have the strength to break up the
engagement, I did it any way I could.”

“What
did Doug say when you told him he couldn’t trust Shari?” Cindy felt shaken.

“He
completely froze,” Deidre went on. “He looked at me like I was the enemy, but I
couldn’t care less. I said I’m just telling you this for your own sake. Why
would you want to be with someone who doesn’t really love you?”

“And
what did he say?” Tad moved closer, trembling.

“Doug
yelled, Shari loves me, only me, and she always will! I laughed in his face and
said he was dreaming. I said Shari told me she doesn’t love you at all and will
never be the wife you’re expecting.”

“Was
that true? Did Shari actually say that?” Cindy couldn’t believe it.

“Not
in so many words,” said Deidre, “but I knew that was how she felt.”

“Oh
God, oh God.” Tad started sobbing.

“For
a long time Doug wouldn’t believe it,” Deidre went on, “so, finally, I told him
she was in love with Tad.”

“You
did what?” Tad shouted, horrified.

“I
told him Shari was in love with you.” Deidre smiled slowly, now. “And I told
him you loved her too, the way a man should love a woman.”

“It
was all none of your business, none at all.” Tad was beside himself.

“When
did you tell Doug this?” Cindy asked, breathless, trying to put the pieces
together fast.

“I
told him the afternoon Shari died.” Deidre’s voice grew louder. “I couldn’t
stand it anymore.”

“Couldn’t
stand what?” asked Cindy.

“I
couldn’t stand the lies and games and phony smiles. I couldn’t stand seeing my
mother and father so proud and happy at something that was never going to
happen. They kept emailing their friends and saying how thrilled Shari was and
how wonderful the wedding would be. I felt like throwing up. There was no
reason to keep this lie going. If Shari couldn’t stop it herself, then I just
stepped in!”

Tad
raced over to Deidre. “You stepped in and helped kill her,” he breathed. “You
said things to Doug you never should have. You pushed him over the edge.”

Deidre
stopped cold and stared at Cindy then. “That wasn’t my plan, that was not what
was intended,” she muttered, momentarily stunned.

“No,
I realize,” said Cindy, her heart full of horror. “You wanted to help your
sister get out of a hurtful relationship.”

“Yes,”
said Deidre, relieved. “That’s what I wanted.”

“You
wanted your sister to have love all her life and be happy,” Cindy went on,
trying to calm the swirling emotions in the room.

“Yes.”
Deidre looked proud now.

“It
backfired though,” said Cindy sadly.

“It
backfired,” Deidre echoed slowly.

“Doug’s
gone to his yacht now to get a few things out before they all leave the
island,” Tad jumped in. “Someone has to stop him before he goes.”

“I’ll
go and speak to him,” said Cindy.

“I’ll
come along.” Tad was alert.

“No,
that will let him know that something is wrong,” said Cindy. “Better if I go
alone.”

“Alone?”
Tad was frightened.

“I’ll
let the police know where I’m going,” Cindy informed him.

“Will
that be enough?” Tad seemed genuinely afraid. “I’ll go with you.”

“No,
you can’t,” said Cindy swiftly. “The police will back me up.”

“Are
you sure? What about Mattheus? Where is he?” Deidre looked around, her voice
growing shrill.

“I’m
not sure where he is,” Cindy answered truthfully.

“Not
sure?” Deidre couldn’t believe it.

“No,
I’m not,” said Cindy, sadly now.

“You
guys have come to a cross in the road?” Deidre asked, agitated.

“That’s
one way to put it,” said Cindy.

“What’s
another way?” asked Tad, looking genuinely concerned.

“Another
way to put it is that Mattheus and I have to deal with whatever fears we’ve
been secretly holding onto. They all come up sooner or later for every couple,
one way or another.”

“Don’t
they ever,” Deidre whispered.

“You’re
a strong woman, Cindy.” Tad stepped closer.

“Maybe
my strength just comes from doing what I know is right,” murmured Cindy.

“That’s
it,” said Deidre, “I always thought that. That’s why I went to talk to Doug.”

Tad
took a long, sorrowful breath then. “We don’t always know what’s right though,
do we? We think we do, but who always knows?”

“No
one,” Cindy agreed. “But right or wrong, I’ve got to go to talk to Doug now.
And don’t worry, the police will give me backup.”

“And
if they can’t?” asked Tad. “The weather’s treacherous.”

“There
are more treacherous things out there than storms,” said Cindy. “The police
will be there, storm or not.”

*

Cindy grabbed a
 raincoat
[cl13]
 
, wrapped it around her, put a tape
recorder in the breast pocket, and left. If she could get to Doug when he was
alone on his boat, she could secretly tape their conversation. Caught unaware
like this there was a better chance he’d slip and she’d get a confession. Or,
if not a confession, at least enough evidence to take him in for further
questioning.

As Cindy walked down the hallway to the
elevator, texts began appearing one after another on her phone. They were from
Mattheus and had been piling up for a while. Obviously she wasn’t getting
reception in the room, but out in the hallway they were all here.

I’m so sorry for not leaving a written
message. Didn’t know what I was doing right then.

So sorry if I caused any upset. I can’t
get you out of my mind.

I love you more than you can ever
imagine. For now and forever. And that’s it.

Answer me, Cindy, how are you? It’s
taking me time to get back to the hotel.

Cindy decided to text back, but lines of
communication were being disrupted by the storm. Her texts back to Mattheus
couldn’t get through.